At the start of our meeting, a simple idea popped into my head.  I suggested that each of the eight team members anonymously write their preference for one of the three competing agencies on a sheet of paper before we began discussions.   Would you believe, everyone selected the same agency - decision made!  Done!   It took three minutes and allowed us to focus our remaining discussion on implementation strategies.   Had we started the meeting by reviewing the pros and cons of each candidate through group discussion, I'm sure we would have spent hours.

Since that time I've developed a number of ways to get groups to the decision point.  These techniques are surprisingly simple.  Let me share a few of them with you.

The Agenda

Most business meeting agendas detail which topics are to be covered in which time frames and who is responsible.  That's ok if it's an information delivery forum but rarely works when group decisions need to be made.  It's much more important to have objectives for the session and state them clearly up front.

Ask yourself, "If this is a successful meeting, what will we have accomplished."   Write down one, two or three statement that define your goals and post them on a flip chart or write them on a white board at the front of the room.   Three objectives are usually all that can be accomplished in a single session.   Check them off or cross them out when they're done.

This technique works particularly well when the meeting is part of a long-term project.  It enables the group to focus on the step immediately at hand and avoid getting overwhelmed.

The Basics

When I facilitate meetings, I make sure my clients have a list of physical things necessary to keep participants' attention and ensure their comfort.  It's amazing how often this stuff causes delays because it got left to the last minute.    Have plenty of flip charts with lots of paper, colorful markers and blue painters or masking tape to hang the results of your work on the wall.   There should be someone who knows in advance that they're going to be the flip-chart maven.  Normally this is the facilitator or leader of the meeting.  Remember this:  The person with the pen in hand also holds the power over the meeting.  If you want to get stuff done, be the pen holder.

Set up the room so that everyone can see everyone else.  This can be accomplished with a conference table or a u-shaped table setting.   Provide comfortable chairs and plenty of elbow room to take notes and stretch out.  Have refreshments available in the room.  There's nothing more counter-productive than a hungry or thirsty meeting participant.  You don't want the distraction of people continually walking in and out.   Don't be cheap.  Providing for participant comfort will pay back in much greater productivity.

The Anonymous Vote

I've used the anonymous vote in many different situations to gather the temperature of the room.  There will always be some people who are more outspoken than others. This technique allows every participant to have an equal say.  Here are some examples:

The "I buy into it" vote shows you how close you are to reaching consensus.  Ask participants to rate their commitment to a specific decision on a scale of 1 to 10 and write the number on a sheet of paper.  If you get all 8s, 9s and 10s, you're on the right track.

The "set the priority" vote tells you how important one or another action is to each participant.   Have everyone label each item A, B or C.

The "here's who or what I support" vote gets the meeting moving along by stopping unproductive discussion.  Because some one or two people will hog the stage to make their opinions known, it's easy to shut them up if the majority of the team favors a specific decision or action.   If it's not a sensitive issue, this can be done by a show of hands.  Otherwise use the anonymous vote.

Let's Make a List

If you're trying to get creative ideas on the table, have participants call out their ideas and write them down on a flip chart.  Then you can have the group prioritize them according to importance.  For even better brainstorming, hand out 4 x 6" sticky notes and ask everyone to write ideas on a single sheet of paper.  Each person can contribute as many ideas as they'd like.  Then take all the notes and group them together on a flipchart according to theme.  When the group sees a large collection of sticky notes together, it's clear they're all thinking along the same path.  Sometimes a single excellent idea will emerge from someone who's too shy to speak up.

Assign Responsibility

Once decisions are made, assign individuals to be responsible for next steps.  Write up a summary flip chart with each of the decisions on it and put someone's name or a group of names with each action item.  I like to assign three categories of people.  First is the "leader".  This person has ultimate responsibility to making things happen.  Second is the "active supporter" who will participate on a committee or actively provide input of some kind.  Third is the "reactive supporter" who agrees to get involved but only when asked.   Everyone goes away knowing exactly what they need to do to move things forward.

About Minutes

If it isn't written down, it's not real.  On the other hand, very few people will read a laborious report on everything that happened at the meeting.  Think of publishing your minutes in bullet or outline form with emphasis on key decisions and action items.  Put lots of white space between each item and make sure you write down only the critical items.  For accountability, it's particularly important to document who agreed to do what.

Susan T. Gauff is Founder/CEO of Predictive Hiring Partners, Inc., a consulting firm that provides small and medium-sized organizations with cost-effective tools, techniques and training to hire right the first time, every time.  For further information visit the website http://www.predictivehiring.com call 803-831-2371